A luxury Travel sales Manager is required to lead a team of Travel Specialists and help them achieve maximum sales and profitability whilst performing office management and overseeing all administrative procedures, to ensure the team are working effectively, efficiently and productively. You will also manage the relationship between suppliers, industry contacts, the product teams and, most importantly, with the client-base. You will ensure the clients’ travel requirements are met and delivered exceeding expectations, in respect of customer service, product delivery and attention to detail.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Clients – to deliver customer delight

When the need arises you will be required to deal directly with clients, take responsibility of individual bookings from initial enquiry to final documentation & post travel follow up.

Ensure that effective questioning techniques are being used to establish client needs and, consequently, your team are able to match these requirements appropriately and profitably.

Ensure that all clients receive the very best service at all times, most notably that each enquiry is responded to and that proposals are produced and communicated to client within 24 hours.

Ensure that all messages are responded to and questions handled promptly.

Ensure phones are answered within the standard set by the company. Ensure answer phone messages and out-of-office messages are appropriately utilised.

Ensure that regular contact is maintained with clients to keep them informed of progress and the status of bookings.

Ensure pre and post trip phone calls from the Travel Specialists are taking place and that responses are logged. Ensure all post-travel follow-up is completed to the customers delight.

Ensure all client issues and complaints are dealt with swiftly and resolved to the clients’ satisfaction. Take responsibility for problem solving in a professional and diplomatic manner to maintain client service levels.

To monitor, record and appropriately respond to client questionnaire responses.

Daily performance management of the Travel Specialists, reporting and feeding back on KPIs and also identifying (and delivering) training and development needs. Provide support, guidance and coaching to improve sales technique and to deliver of exemplary levels of customer service.

Keep an accurate log of all new enquiries and submit a weekly report. Constantly analyse the data, looking for trends and new opportunities.

Hold regular meetings with the Travel Specialists to gain insight to what they are currently working on. Using your experience, intervene on larger bookings to work with the Travel Specialist to help convert the sale.

Randomly monitor the quality of quote output and ensure that best practice is used to follow-up proposals sent to clients.

Be aware of the team sales target and work to ensure these are reached or exceeded to maximise profitability of the team.

Maximise profits through accurate use of TS, Galileo and mark-up guidelines.

Minimise costing errors through attention to detail and accurate use of both TS and manual rates.

Maintain a motivated and happy team.

Assist the Director of Sales & Operations with recruitment and with HR interview for new or replacement staff to meet the business need.

Holiday approvals and absence management ensuring that HR is kept informed of any issues

Provide cover for absent colleagues so that service standards are not adversely affected.

Communication

Ensure that internal documentation and generic product information (magazines, press releases…etc) are circulated and read in order to maintain product knowledge.

Circulate all press exposure and ensure that they are read by the Travel Specialists.

Attend supplier presentations and functions when required to maintain up to date product knowledge.

Organise regular team meetings in order to remain up to date with company and departmental news and developments.

Share your own product knowledge through meetings and presentations.

Always ensure that you are on-top of quotes and significant bookings in the ‘pipeline’.